bushwalking

We all know that getting out and communing with nature is good for both our body and our mental health, but where to start if you've never done any hiking but are keen to give it a go?

Trekking, hiking, tramping, rambling or just plain walking - whatever you call if and whatever you aspire to, whether it's a kilometre on a flat countryside track to conquering rugged terrain over multiple days, or even taking it easy with a Great Walk of Australia, it's an activity that most of us can achieve. 

If, like ExtraVirgin host, Natascha, however, you have lots of questions: (Am I too old? Am I too unfit? is hiking hazardous? What gear do I need? What happens if I get lost?) then listen up, because our guest on this podcast will answer all those questions and more. 

Among her many other talents., Caro Ryan is an expert bushwalker and search and rescue volunteer. She started her blog, LotsaFreshAir.com to inspire, teach and encourage people to get into hiking and the outdoors safely. It’s all about connecting people to wild places in meaningful ways, so they can look after themselves, their mates and these precious places we visit. She teaches wilderness navigation, authored the book, ‘How to Navigate - the art of traditional map & compass navigation in an Australian context’ and hosts, ‘Rescued - an Outdoor Podcast for Hikers and Adventurers.

In addition to imparting some incredibly useful  (and potentially life-saving) tips, Caro shares her genuine passion for getting out in nature. We guarantee that she will inspire you to want to do the same.

www.extravirginfoodandtravel.com/podcast

Closer to Morocco than Madrid, the resort town of Nerja on Spain's southern coastline, draws visitors to its beaches, historic caves and mountainous national park that surrounds it.

In this episode, experienced hiker Jane takes us high up into the Rio Chilla, a beautiful, clear water walk-in canyon that's popular with families and tourists with a name that translates as "Screaming River". 

It's a trip that should have taken about 4 hours. But as you'll hear, took much, much more. Well-prepared and loaded with research, Jane shares her story of what she learned from a long, painful and lonely night when she found herself waking up to a dog licking her face, the threat of wild boar and what items she's added to her packing list since.

Her story highlights the value of:

• research
• telling someone where you’re going
• choosing a hike to suit the plan
• taking the right gear / being well prepared
• acting fast to put on your warm layers
• using a whistle to try and attract attention
• keeping calm and using strategies to pass time/distract from pain
• the value of satellite communications
• adding an emergency blanket to a packing list

Visit the website for transcript.

Matt U’Brien’s story is powerful.

During his 17-year policing career (mostly within the Police Rescue Squad), he’s done literally hundreds of rescues and saved countless lives whilst risking his own.

What’s unique about Matt, is that during this time he also found himself in the critical position of needing to be rescued himself.

For this, and many more reasons, I’ve asked him to join me for a special double episode to share his experiences from both sides of the rescue coin.

We talk about what led him to join Police Rescue, his love of the bush and canyoning, and some of his insights from years of helping out people like you and me, who just love being in nature. Oh, and if you’re squeamish about your family jewels, you might want to stop listening between 19:30-21:00.

Today, he’s on a different journey, one that comes as a consequence of his years spent serving the community, often being alongside people on the worst day of their lives. This year will see him travel 2,400 km from the Lambert centre of Australia (Heart of Country), to Parliament House in Canberra (Heart of Nation), with a critical message for our Country’s leaders.

You can connect with Matt and his podcast at https://linktr.ee/h2hwalk

And the Heart 2 Heart Walk at https://www.heart2heartwalk.org/

Check out the current work of the Blue Mountains Police Rescue Squad at https://www.facebook.com/BlueMtnsPoliceRescue

To learn more about what to take on a hike and loads of helpful tips and tricks, visit my website: lotsafreshair.com where you can also download free packing lists for day and overnight hikes.

Or head over to my YouTube channel for over 100 videos on how-to’s and where-to’s.

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The content in this episode may be confronting and difficult for some listeners; it includes issues of PTSD, depression, anxiety, suicide and trauma. Remember, if you need help to reach out by Googling ‘Mental Health Helpline’ in your area.

In Australia, you can call Lifeline 24/7 on 13 11 14 or visit BeyondBlue.org.au.

Further urgent help and information for first responders can be found at Phoenix Australia.

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Sponsor // Paddy Pallin

Rescued Podcast main photo // Ben Cirulis and fotografija.com.au

Nature SFX // freesound.org [Kangaroo Vindaloo and Monkey Pants]

When we hear the whisper to step off the concrete, away from the built environment and into the bush, we step into a world and a place that speaks to the very heart of what it means to be alive.

These places, away from the constraints and controls that are part of our day-to-day lives, connect us to a place that is proven to be fuel for our bodies and the salve for our souls.

By walking away from the cement, we open ourselves up to the proven benefits to our mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health; but in doing so, we also expose ourselves to environments, places and conditions that require a keen sense of risk and a whole bunch of skills to keep us safe and enjoying these places for many years to come.

It’s in these places, full of wildness and joy, that we can also find ourselves facing unexpected and unplanned-for situations, even leading us to the edge of life itself.

Rescued is a podcast of conversations with rescuers and those who’ve been rescued. It’s about the lessons we learn about ourselves, the places we go and why - without judgement - to help us have better adventures, manage risk and deal with the unexpected.

So whether you’re an armchair traveller or a multiday expeditioner, the Rescued Podcast exists to help us all connect with nature, the outdoors community and learn from those who’ve gone before.

I’m Caro Ryan from LotsaFreshAir.com - a hiking and bushwalking website and YouTube channel, started in 2012, to help inspire people to spend time adventuring, teach them how to go there safely and then encourage them to do so, looking after themselves, their mates and this incredible planet that we live on.

I invite you to join me and my guests, as they share about the time when things went wrong: what happened, what they learned and how we can stop these things from happening again.

I’ll be chatting with weekend adventurers and everyday nature-lovers, people just like you and me, along with a variety of people from emergency services and supporting organisations, like those involved in training, equipment, research and academia, lending a different perspective for incidents in these wild places we love to visit.

So join me on Rescued: An Outdoor Podcast for Hikers and Adventurers, wherever you get your podcasts.

The Rescued Podcast is produced on the unceded lands of the Gundungurra and Dharug people, of the Blue Mountains of NSW. I pay my respects to Elders past and present and acknowledge their enduring connection to and care for Country. 

Special thanks to our sponsors, Paddy Pallin and to Jen Brown for production support. 

This has been a LotsaFreshAir production.

Welcome to the Travelman Podcast, my name is Ben and I host this cool travel podcast. If you’re joining me for the first time then thanks a bunch for listening.

On today’s episode, I’ll be chatting to my pal Chris Curran who runs the Podcast Engineering School, which is an online school to learn the ins and outs of podcast engineering and he’s also the host of the Podcast Engineering Show, which I listen to religiously.

Today though, I’ll be chatting to Chris about cool day trips to do in Colorado, some hiking that he’s done, and some other travel within the state of Colorado.

So, sit back and enjoy part one of our conversation.

Follow Chris:

Podcast Engineering School: podcastengineeringschool.com/

PES on Facebook: facebook.com/podcastengineeringschool/

PES on Instagram: instagram.com/podcastengineer/

PES on Twitter: twitter.com/PodcastEngineer

PES on YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCw1z9z8ikRabXA4zku88w5A

Podcast Engineering Show: podcastengineeringschool.com/category/show/

Additional Information:

Things to do in Colorado: visittheusa.com.au/state/colorado

Colorado Website: colorado.com/

Follow Travelman Podcast:

iTunes: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/travelman-podcast/id1281446908

Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/2bfulkX1dTkOb50MaCm0NN

Libsyn: travelmanpodcast.libsyn.com/

Facebook: facebook.com/travelmanpodcast

Instagram: instagram.com/travelmanpodcast/?hl=en

Twitter: twitter.com/TravelmanPod

Tune In: tunein.com/podcasts/Travel/Travelman-Podcast-p1103948/

Stitcher: stitcher.com/podcast/ben-dow/travelman-podcast

YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UC3cYw4pCrK3C-Rty3zmw-eQ

Travelman Podcast website: travelmanpodcast.com

Travelman Podcast email: travelmanpodcast@gmail.com

Sarah Ellyard’s childhood, spent camping and bushwalking with her wilderness conservation father, explains her connection to the environment, and her ability to understand its importance to our health, physical and mental.

She finds it hard to understand why Western society places such a low value on nature, and why we find it hard to take action on climate change.

Sarah is part of Stop Adani Sydney, a movement that is trying to block the development of the Adani Carmichael coal mine, in the north of the Galilee Basin in Central Queensland, Australia.

Sadiya Binte Karim is a Bangladeshi woman. Also part of Stop Adani Sydney, Sadiya reflects, for us, on Sarah’s story. She links it to climate justice, both in Australia, and in countries like Bangladesh and India, which are already suffering the consequences of climate change.